Firing mechanism for mortars

ABSTRACT

A firing mechanism for a hand-held mortar is located in the rear leg of a carrying handle secured to the exterior of the barrel in the vicinity of the firing chamber therein and comprises a trigger pivotally mounted in the handle so as to project from the upper end of the rear leg, a firing pin slidably disposed in the barrel for movement into and out of the firing chamber, and a connection between the trigger and firing pin for transferring movement of one to the other so that the position of the trigger serves as a visual indicator of the position of the firing pin in order to prevent unintended firing of a mortar round dropped into the muzzle end of the barrel. A manual selector serves to position and lock the firing pin in either a fixed firing or a safe retracted arrangement. In addition, the selector may be rotated to an inactive position which frees the firing pin to respond to the actuation of the trigger.

Unite States Patent [191 Feldmaier FIRING MECHANISM FOR MORTARS [75] Inventor: James T. Feldmaier, Latham, NY.

[73] Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Secretary of the Army, Washington, DC.

[22] Filed: Jan. 3, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 320,798

Primary Examiner-Stephen C. Bentley Att0rneyHarry M. Saragovitz et al.

[57] ABSTRACT A firing mechanism for a hand-held mortar is located in the rear leg of a carrying handle secured to the exterior of the barrel in the vicinity of the firing chamber therein and comprises a trigger pivotally mounted in the handle so as to project from the upper end of the rear leg, a firing pin slidably disposed in the barrel for movement into and out of the firing chamber, and a connection between the trigger and firing pin for transferring movement of one to the other so that the position of the trigger serves as a visual indicator of the position of the firing pin in order to prevent unintended firing of a mortar round dropped into the muzzle end of the barrel. A manual selector serves to position and lock the firing pin in either a fixed firing or a safe retracted arrangement. In addition, the selector may be rotated to an inactive position which frees the firing pin to respond to the actuation of the trigger.

18 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures PAIENIEDJAN new I SHEEI 10F 4 I'H L;

PATENIEDJAu i I974 SHEET 20? 4 M mwmHw M m: w:

PATENTEDJAH 1 m4 SHEET 30F 4 |O4 n4 H5 108 PATENTEU JAN 1 I974 saw no; 4

FIRING MECHANISM FOR MORTARS BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a firing mechanism for a hand-held mortar and is more particularly directed to a firing mechanism operable in either a fixed firing position or by means of a trigger.

Mortar ammunition is customarily fired by dropping a round down a barrel having a closed breech end provided with a protruding firing pin in a fixed firing position. In the event the dropped round fails to fire upon initial impact with the firing pin, the removal of the unfired round from the barrel is complicated by the possibility of a delayed discharge. Consequently, the handheld mortars in current military use are generally provided with a trigger which can be repeatedly reciprocated into impact with an unfired round in order to minimize the possibility of a failure to fire. The inclusion of a trigger-operated firing mechanism in a mortar is additionally desirable where a greater accuracy of fire is required or where the discharge of the round must be independent of the loading thereof.

However, considerable difficulty has been encountered with these trigger-actuated firing mechanisms due to breakage of parts or other malfunctionswhich leave the firing pin in a protruding fired position despite the return of the trigger to its prefired status. This situation is extremely hazardous in the event the operator drops another round into the barrel without being aware that the firing pin was not properly retracted.

Furthermore, in those mortars which are in current military use, the trigger is customarily located behind the firing chamber in the barrel so that the resultant proximity to the ground subjects the components of the trigger assembly to the dust and dirt ordinarily raised during firing. In addition, where the mortar is being operated by only one man, the conventional rear end location of the trigger requires a high degree of coordination between the hand utilized to hold the barrel in the aimed position and the hand required to actuate the trigger.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION achieved without corresponding movement of the other.

Another object of this invention resides in the provision of a firing mechanism, as aforesaid, which can be readily converted between a fixed position wherein firing is achieved by theimpact of a round dropped into the muzzle end of the barrel and a free retractedposi located forwardly of the firing pin in position to be readily actuated by the same hand being utilized to hold the barrel in the aimed position thereof. 7

It is an additional object of this invention to provide a firing mechanism for a hand-held mortar which will be unusually simple to operate, positive in action, and require relatively few parts which are easy to manufacture.

It has been found that the foregoing objects can be achieved by a firing mechanism wherein a trigger lever is pivoted at one end thereof in the vicinity of the junction between the linear portion of a carrying handle and one of the inclined legs which serve to fixedly mount the handle to the mortar barrel. This arrangement enables the operator of the mortar to squeeze the trigger with the same hand utilized to grip the carrying handle for holding the barrel in the aimed position thereof. The firing actuation of the trigger depresses a slidable spring-biased plunger housed in the carrying handle leg to pivot an actuating lever extending therefrom into the mortar barrel in position to impart linear movement to a firing pin.

The firing mechanism also includes a rotatable selector which cooperates with a sear responsive to the movement of the spring-biased plunger to provide a choice between a safe first position wherein the firing pin is locked in a retracted position relative to the firing chamber in the mortar barrel, a ready-to-fire second position wherein the firing pin is free to be advanced into the firing chamber by the actuation of the trigger, and a fixed fire third position wherein the firing pin is locked in place with the tip thereof projecting into the firing chamber to effect the impact discharge of a live round dropped into the mortar barrel. Since the components of the firing mechanism provide a positive line of contact between the trigger and the firing pin such that movement of one is correspondingly imparted to the other, the pivotal actuation of the trigger into a suitable slot disposed along the underside of the linear portion of the carrying handle advances the firing pin to enter the firing chamber. When the firing pressure on the trigger is removed, the return of the spring-biased plunger to the pre-fired position thereof pivots the actuating lever to retract the firing pin from the firing chamber and simultaneously pivots the trigger lever to depend from the linear portion of the carrying handle. The distinct difference between these two positions of the trigger enables the operator of the mortar to readily ascertain the position of the firing pin relative to the firing chamber at any given time and thereby anticipate the result of dropping a live round into the muzzle end of the mortar barrel. Positive knowledge of the firing pin position is particularly invaluable in the event a part breakage or an accumulation of powder residue in the path of the firing pin travel interferes with the automatic retraction thereof expected upon release of firing pressure on the trigger.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS lower portion of v FIG. 2 is an enlarged elevational view of a portion of FIG. 1 which is partially sectioned to show the relationship between the firing pin and the trigger in the safe position of the selector;

FIG. 3 is a fragmentary view of FIG. 2 but showing the firing mechanism and the selector in the fixed firing position;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary view of FIG. 3 but showing the selector in the trigger-firing position thereof and the firing mechanism in the position immediately prior to actuation of the trigger;

FIG. 5 is an enlarged section along line 5-5 in FIG.

FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the components which serve as the connection between the firing pin lever and the trigger; and

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of the selector assembly DESCRIPTION OF A PREFERRED EMBODIMENT As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a hand-held mortar is provided with a conventional barrel 12 terminating in a closed breech end defining a firing chamber 13. A reduced diameter extension 14 is secured to the breech end of barrel 12 and tenninates in an arcuate knob 16 to which a relatively small baseplate 17 can be readily attached to serve as the means for grounding the recoil thrust generated during firing. While mortars of this type are customarily carried by a strap removably attached to spaced apart portions of barrel 12, for purposes of this invention the carrying function is provided by a handle 18 formed by a linear gripping section 20 parallel to the bore axis of barrel 12 and terminating at each end thereof in oppositely inclined front and rear legs, 22 and 24 respectively. The end of front leg 22 is arcuately extended to form a split collar 26 arranged to surround barrel 12 at approximately the mid-point thereof. As indicated at 28, the mating ends of collar 26 are outwardly turned and arranged to be releasably joined by a suitable screw 30. Rearward leg 24 extends into fixed engagement with the reduced diameter portion of barrel extension 14.

The underside of gripping section 20 of handle 18 is interiorly slotted, as best indicated at 32 in FIG. 2, and is, in addition, arcuately recessed at the junction thereof with the upper end of rear leg 24 to form a mating seat 34 for a cylindrical pivot 36. An interiorly threaded hole 38 extends transversely through the central portion of pivot 36 to engage with an externally threaded section 40 located along the reduced diameter rearward end 41 of a rod-shaped trigger 42. Spaced forwardly of threaded section 40 is a flanged stop 44 which limits the distance to which end 41 of trigger 42 can be threaded through pivot 36 to extend rearwardly thereof.

Rear leg 24 is provided with a hollow interior 46 arranged to slidably receive a tubular sleeve 48 which, in

turn, houses a slidable plunger 50 terminating at the upper end thereof in an enlarged head 52. Extending through the upper end of sleeve 48 is a relatively large transverse hole 54 arranged to receive rear end portion 41 of trigger 42. Sleeve 48 is reduced in diameter along the lower half thereof, as indicated at56, to form an annular shoulder 58 which serves to seat a compression spring 60 for contact. with the underside of plunger head 52. Sleeve portion 56 includes a pair of'elongated axial slots 61 in opposite sides thereof. A plug 62 is pinned to the lower end of sleeve 48, as at 64, and projects therefrom to terminate in an enlarged diameter portion 66 which serves as a stop surface 67 for a cylindrical sear 68 slidably secured to sleeve 48 to surround the reduced diameter portion 56 thereof. The enlarged diameter portion 66 of plug 62 is centrally slit, as best indicated at 70 in FIG. 6, to provide a clevis end for a purpose to be shown.

Sear 68 is of hollow configuration with a transverse pin 72 fixed therein in position to pass through slots 61 on sleeve portion 56. A spring 74 is seated in reduced diameter sleeve portion 56 between plug 62 and sear pin 72 and serves to normally bias sear 68 upwardly relative to sleeve 48 to the point where pin 72 contacts the upper ends of slots 61 as best shown in FIG. 2. The exterior periphery of sear 68 is ci'rcumferentially recessed at one end, as indicated at 76, and is similarly recessed, as at 78, at the opposite end thereof.

The lower end of handle leg 24 is widened, as indicated at 79, to permit a corresponding enlargement of the hollow interior thereof for receiving a firing lever 82 pivotally mounted therein on a transverse pin 84 press-fitted into the opposite sides of handle leg 24. Lever 82 is formed with a trio of outwardly projecting arms one of which, identified as 86, extends, upwardly beyond pivot pin 84 in parallelism with the axis of leg 24 to terminate in an enlarged end 88 having a flat surface 90 arranged for slidable contact with the exterior periphery of sear 68 below circumferential recess 78. Arm 86 is arcuately contoured below enlarged end 88, as indicated at 92, to provide a clearance area for the lower end of sear 68 during the rotation of lever 82. Extending outwardly from lever 82 immediately below arcuate surface 92 is a second arm 94 which extends at an angle to the axis of leg 24 into engagement with the clevis end of plug 62 and, as indicated at 96, is affixed thereto for relative pivotal and slidable movement. A third firing lever arm extends vertically downward through the open end of rear leg 24 and through an opening 102 of corresponding configuration in the exterior of reduced diameter extension 14 of mortar barrel 12.

The interior of extension 14 is bored to fixedly receive a cylindrical housing 104 in which a firing pin 108 is slidably retained in the forward end thereof. Lever arm 100 extends through a slot 1 12 in the side of housing 104 adjacent the forward end of opening 102 and is formed with an arcuate end 114 disposed in bearing engagement in a vertical hole 115 through firing pin 108. The forward end of firing pin 108 is provided with a flange 116 terminating in a rearwardly tapered aft portion 118 arranged to contact a similarly inclined bevel surface 120 at the front end of housing 104. Extending forwardly from flange 1 16 is a firing pin tip 122 in slidable engagement with a hole 124 longitudinally provided in a boss 126 projecting into the breech end of firing chamber 13. The hollow interior of extension 14 is extended into boss 126 to provide a stop surface 127 for contact with the forward face of flange 116. The distance between stop surfaces 120 and 127 determines the extent to which firing pin tip 122 can be advanced to protrude into firing chamber 13.

Immediately above the widened interior 80 in rear leg 24 is a transverse hole 128 in which a selector 130 is rotatably seated in position to be actuated into and out of engagement with sear 68. A fingerpiece 132 is preferably integrally formed to project from-one endof selector 130 and extends beyond the exterior periphery thereof in position to engage in a trio of notches 134 which are formed into the exterior surface of rear leg 24, as best shown in FIG. 1, and are radially spaced apart at substantially 90 intervals.

The underside of the projecting portion of fingerpiece 132 is substantially V-shaped, as best shown at 136 in FIG. 5, and the opposite walls of notches 134 are each correspondingly inclined to permit camming disengagement therebetween as selector 130 is being rotated. Selector 130 includes a central detent plate 137 of substantially rectangular configuration formed between a pair of circular discs 138 adapted to fit in hole 128 for axially slidable and rotatable movement therein. Extending axially outward from the disc 138 remote from fingerpiece 132 is a stud 140 having an an- 1 nular groove 142 adjacent the free end thereof. An inverted cup 144 in which the closed end thereof is centrally bored, as at 146, is arranged to be seated against the exterior surface of handle legv 24 opposite that in which notches 134 are provided. Within the interior of cup 144 is assembled a. spring 148 and a retainer 150 which is, in turn, held in place by a split washer 152 releasably engageable in groove 142 at the end of stud 140. Retainer 150 is formed with a hollow stem 154 for the passage of stud 140 therethrough and a circular flange 156 at the end of stem 154 fits into the interior of cup 144 and serves to seat spring 148 therebetween. When thus assembled, spring 148 is sufficiently compressed to normally pull the V-shaped underside 135 of fingerpiece into engagement with the particular notch 134 then in alignment therewith. To shift selector 130 to another of notches 134, it is merely necessary to rotate fingerpiece 132 in either direction thereby causing V-shaped edge 135 to ride upwardly on the inclined sidewall of notch 134 out of engagement therewith. As continued rotation of selector 130 brings V-shaped edge 135 on fingerpiece 132 into alignment with adjacent notch 134, spring 148 will automatically provide the desired locking engagement therebetween.

As shown in FIG. 1, selector 130 is in the safe position thereof which can only be attained when firing pin 108 is in the retracted position of FIG. 2. In this position, plunger 50 and sear 68 are biased upwardly to a position wherein one side of detent portion 137 of sele'ctor 130 enters into sear recess 76,. as best shown in FIG. 5, and blocks sear 68 against rearward movement relative to sleeve 48. Since sear 68 is in contact with the upper enlarged end 88 of lever arm 86,. firing. pin lever 82 is positively restrained against the pivotal movement required to actuate firirig. pin I08 forwardly out of the fully retracted position thereof. In view of the contact between pin 72 and the lower end of plunger 50, the retention of sear 68 in a locked position prevents movement of plunger 50 thereby holding trigger 42. against any pivotal movement which may be imparted thereto by the hand holding carrying handle 18.

In order to convert the firing mechanism to the drop fire" position shown in FIG. 3 wherein firing pin tip 122 protrudes into firing chamber 13 to automatically discharge a round dropped into the muzzle end of mortar barrel 12, it is necessary to rotate selector 130 in a counterclockwise direction through a 90 angle. During such rotation, detent portion 137 is moved out of contact with the edge of the upper wall surface of sear notch 76 and into contact with the corresponding edge of the lower wall surface thereof, as best shown in FIG.

3. During the continued rotation of selector 130, sear 68 is forced rearwardly out of contact with enlarged end 88 of lever arm 86 thereby freeing lever 82 for pivotal movement in a counterclockwise direction. As sear 68 comes into contact with enlarged diameter portion 66 of plug 62and is additionally displaced by the rotation of selector 130, sleeve 48 is correspondingly moved to the position shown in FIG. 3 thereby pivoting lever 82 to actuate firing pin 108 forwardly. At the same time, the contact between the periphery of transverse hole 54 and the rear end of trigger 42 pivots the latter to partially enter into slot 32 of handle section 20 thereby visually indicating that firing pin 108 is in the fixed or drop fire" position. At this point, fingerpiece 132 of selector 130 is in alignment with the drop fire notch 134 in rear leg 124 and will automatically engage therewith in response to the bias of spring 148.

In the event circumstances dictate the firing of the mortar by trigger 42 and firing pin 108 is in the drop fire position, selector 130 must be rotated in a clockwise direction past the safe position for another to the trigger-firing position. As selector 130 is rotated toward the safe position shown in FIG. 2, detent plate 137 moves out of engagement with the edge of the rear wall surface of sear notch 76 thereby permitting sleeve 48 to move upwardly in response to the bias of plunger 50 against trigger end 41 then in contact with the upper peripheral surface of transverse hole 54. During this extremely short upward travel of sleeve 48, lever 82 is pivoted thereby in a clockwise direction to retract firing pin tip 122 into the interior of boss 126. Once the retraction of firing pin 108 is halted by stop surface on housing 104, sear 68 is biased upwardly by spring 74 to ride onto flat surface 90 on lever arm 86 and block lever 82 against retrograde movement. This upward movement of seat 68 relative to sleeve 48 is halted by the contact of sear pin 72 with the upper ends of slots 61 whereupon such pin 72 is in position to be moved downwardly by plunger 50 during the next firing actuation of trigger 42.

If selector were to be released for entry into the safe notch 134 in .rear leg 24, the engagement between detent plate-137 and the edge of the upper wall surface of sear recess 76 would, as previously explained, prevent pivotal movement of trigger 42 even though squeezed by the hand grasping section 20 of handle 18. However, where selector 130 is rotated past the safe position and into the trigger-firing position shown in FIG. 4, the blocking action of detent plate 137 is removed. Thus, when trigger 42 is squeezed, the

rear end thereof depresses plunger 50 against the bias of spring 60 thereby forcing sear 68 downwardly against the bias of spring 74 as sear pin 72 moves in elongated slots 61. As sear 68 moves downwardly, the portion thereof below recess 78 moves out of contact with flat surface 90 on lever arm 86 and into the free area defined by contour 92 thereby permitting lever 82 to be pivoted by the firing movement simultaneously imparted to tubular sleeve 48 by the compressed plunger spring 60. During this firing. movement of sleeve 48, lever 82 is pivoted in the counterclockwsie direction thereby causing lever arm 100 to move firing pin 108 forwardly to the firing position shown in FIG. 3. Upon release of trigger 42, springs 60 and 74 will return the entire firing assembly to the prefired position thereof. In the event some malfunction results in a failure of firing pin 108 to retract, the continuous connection between each of the components in the entire firing assembly will result in a corresponding failure of trigger 42 to return to the exposed position of FIG. 2 thereby clearly indicating that firing pin tip 122 is still protruding into firing chamber 13.

Thus, there is here provided a simple and reliable firing mechanism for a hand-held mortar which can be se lectively operated in either a drop-firing mode wherein the discharge of a round dropped into the muzzle end of the barrel is automatically effected by the impact with a fixed firing pin and a trigger-firing mode wherein the firing pin is retracted in position to be actuated by a pivotal trigger located in the handle utilized to carry the mortar. In addition, the firing mechanism may be positively locked either in the fixed firing position or in the fully retracted position. The position of the firing pin tip within the interior of the mortar barrel can be easily determined by the position of the trigger in the carrying handle which also serves as the means for holding the mortar barrel in an aimed position. If the trigger is parallel to the gripping portion of the carrying handle and partially concealed therein, the firing pin must protrude into the firing chamber. On the other hand, if the trigger depends from the gripping portion of the handle at an unmistakable angle thereto, the operator of the mortar can definitely assume that the firing pin tip does not protrude into the firing chamber. This visual indication of the position of the firing pin tip can be relied on even though the firing pin should fail to properly return to the retracted position thereof upon the release of the trigger during trigger-operated firing. This is due to the fact that the firing mechanism of this invention provides a continuous physical connection between the firing pin and the trigger which does not permit these components to move independently of one another.

The foregoing disclosure and description of the invention is illustrative only. Various changes may be made within the scope of the appended claims without departing from the spirit of the invention.

I claim:

1. In a hand-held mortar having a barrel and a firing chamber therein, a carrying handle fixed to the exterior of the barrel in the vicinity of the firing chamber, a firing pin slidably disposed in the barrel for movement into and out of the firing chamber, and a trigger pivoted in the carrying handle and arranged to depend therefrom for movement between a fired and a prefired position, a firing mechanism between the trigger and the firing pin for transferring movement of one to corresponding movement of the other, comprising,

a tubular sleeve slidably disposed in the carying handle in engagement with one end of the trigger,

a lever pivotally mounted in the carrying handle in pivotal engagement with both said sleeve and the firing pin,

a plunger slidably housed in said tubular sleeve,

a spring seated in said sleeve for normally urging said plunger into contact with the trigger, and

a sear slidably mounted on said sleeve for normally blocking pivotal movement of said lever whereby pivotal movement of the trigger in a firing direction actuates said plunger to compress said spring and simultaneously displace said sear out of blocking engagement with said lever whereupon said spring urges said sleeve to pivot said lever and advance the firing pin into the firing chamber.

2. The firing mechanism defined in claim 1 wherein said sleeve includes a pair of opposed elongated slots and said sear includes a transverse pin disposed for passage through said slots and into contact with said plunger whereby the actuation thereof by said trigger is transferred to said sear.

3. The firing mechanism defined in claim 1 wherein said sleeve includes a transverse opening therethrough and said one end of said trigger is disposed in contact with a portion of the peripheral surface defining said transverse opening and in contact with said plunger whereby the return of said trigger to the prefired position thereof actuates said sleeve to pivot said lever for effecting the withdrawal of said firing pin from the firing chamber.

4. The firing mechanism defined in claim 1 wherein said lever comprises,

a first arm pivotally connected to the end of said sleeve remote from said trigger,

a second arm pivotally engaged with said firing pin,

and

a third arm terminating in an enlarged stop surface engageable with said sear for blocking pivotal movement of said lever in response to said trigger being disposed in the prefired position thereof.

5. The firing mechanism defined in claim 1 including selector means disposed in the carrying handle for engagement with said sear, said selector means being adjustable to a first locked position wherein said sear is free to move relative to said sleeve in response to the firing actuation of said trigger, said selector means being further adjustable to a second locked position wherein said sear is blocked against the movement required to permit said firing pin to enter into the firing chamber, and said selector means being still further adjustable to a third locked position wherein said sear is blocked against the movement required to permit withdrawal of said firing pin from the firing chamber.

6. In a hand-held mortar having a barrel including a firing chamber and a carrying handle fixed to the exterior of the barrel in the vicinity of the firing chamber, a firing mechanism comprising,

a firing pin slidably disposed in the barrel for movement into and out of the firing chamber,

a tubular sleeve slidably disposed in the carrying handle,

a lever pivotally mounted in the carrying handle for direct pivotal engagement with both said firing pin and said sleeve,

a plunger slidably housed in said sleeve,

spring means seated between said plunger and said sleeve,

a scar slidably mounted on said sleeve in position to normally block pivotal movement of said lever,

and a trigger pivotally mounted in the carrying handle in position to extend into said sleeve in contact with the end of said plunger whereby firing movement of said trigger actuates said plunger to compress said spring means and simultaneously displace said sear out of blocking engagement with said lever whereupon said compressed spring means forces said sleeve to pivot said lever in a direction for advancing said firing pin into the firing chamber and whereby the release of said trigger permits said spring means to return said plunger and said trigger to the prefired positions thereof thereby actuating said sleeve to pivot said lever in a direction for withdrawing the firing pin from the firing chamber.

7. The firing mechanism defined in claim 6 wherein the barrel includes a reduced diameter portion extending rearwardly of the firing chamber therein, a cylindrical housing fixed in said reduced diameter portionof the barrel for slidably receiving said firing pin, and a protruding boss in the breech end of the firingchamber having a central hole therethrough for the passage of the tip of said firing pin, said firing pin housing and said boss being spaced apart and disposed to provide stop surfaces for halting movement of said firing pin in either direction.

8. The firing mechanism defined in claim 6 wherein the end of said sleeve remote from said lever is provided with a transverse opening therethrough for passage of the end of said trigger into contact'with said plunger, said transverse opening being sufficiently larger in diameter than said trigger end to accommodate the pivotal displacement-required thereof during the actuation of said plunger and to also avoid. any interference with the subsequent slidable firing movement imparted to said sleeve by said spring means.

9. The firing mechanism defined in claim 6 wherein said pivotal lever comprises,

a first arm in pivotal engagement with said firing pin,

a second arm in pivotal engagement with said sleeve at the end thereof remote from said trigger, and

a third arm having a stop surface engageable with said sear in response to said trigger being disposed in the prefired position thereof.

10. The firing mechanism defined in claim 6 includmg a selector rotatably disposed in the carrying handle for movement into and out of engagement with said sear, and

means in the carrying handle for locking said selector in a first position wherein said sear is free to respond to the firing actuation of said plunger, in a second position wherein said sear is blocked against the movement required to permit said lever to pivot in the direction for withdrawing the firingpin from the firing chamber, and in a third position wherein said sear is blocked against the movement required to permit said sleeve to pivot said lever in the direction for advancing the firing pin in the firing chamber. I l l. The firing mechanism defined in claim 10 wherein said sear includes an annular recess in the exterior thereof, said selector includes a fingerpiece protruding from the exterior surface of the carrying handle and a central detent portion extending into the interior of the carrying handle and adapted to be rotated into and out of contact with the opposing sidewalls of said annular recess in said seat, and said locking means comprises a plurality of notches radially spaced in the exterior surface of the carrying handle for releasable engagement with said fingerpiece on said selector.

fixed to said barrel forwardly of said firing chamber 6 therein, an inclined hollow rear leg fixed to said reduced diameter barrel portion rearwardly of said firing chamber, and a gripping portion substantially parallel with said barrel between the outer ends of said legs, v

a trigger pivotally disposed in said carrying handle in the vicinity of the junction of said gripping portion and said rear leg, said trigger having a rear end extending into the hollow interior of said rear leg and a forward end depending from the underside of said gripping portion on, said' carrying handle,

a tubular sleeve slidably disposed within the hollow interior of said rear leg of said carrying handle and having a transverse opening therethrough for passage of said trigger rear end,

spring biased plunger means slidably seated in said tubular sleeve in contact with said trigger rear'end,

a firing pin slidably disposed in said reduced diameter portion of said barrel for movement into and out of said firing chamber,

lever means pivotally mounted within said rear leg in the vicinity of the junction thereof with said reduced diameter portion of said barrel in simultaneous pivotal engagement with said tubular sleeve and said firing pin,

spring-biased sear means slidably mounted on said tubular sleeve in contact with said plunger means and normally urged into contact with said lever means to block pivotal movement thereof,

selector means rotatably mounted in said rear leg of said carrying handle for movement into and out of engagement with said sear means, and

means for releasably locking said selector means in a plurality of radially spaced positions including, a first position wherein said sear means is free to move into and out of blocking contact with said lever means in response to the pivotal movement of said trigger, a second position wherein said sear means is retained in blocking engagement with said lever means in response to said firing pin protruding into said firing chamber, and a third position wherein said sear means is retained in blocking engagement with said lever means in response to said firing pin being withdrawn from said firing chamber.

13. The mortar defined in claim 12 wherein said sear includes an annular recess and said selector means comprises,

a selector having a body portion formed by a pair of spaced discs disposed in said rear leg of said carrying handle for rotative and axial movement,

a fingerpiece fixed to one of said discs for rotating said selector, and

a substantially rectangular detent portion centrally fixed between said discs in position to intersect said sear during a portion of the rotation of said selector and engage with the sidewalls of said annular sear recess whereby said sear is longitudinally displaced relativeto said sleeve in accordance with the direction of rotation of said selector.

14. The mortar defined in claim 13 wherein said means for releasably locking said selector in said plurality of radially spaced positions comprises,

a plurality of notches radially spaced at intervals in the exterior surface of said rear leg of said carrying handle,

a substantially V-shaped edge on the underside of said fingerpiece extending radially beyond said disc adjacent thereto for engagement in said notches during the rotation ofsaid selector,

a stud extending from said disc remote from said fingerpiece in axial alignment with said detent portion and of sufficient length to protrude from said carrying handle rear leg on the side opposite from said plurality of notches,

a spring retainer fixed to said stud, and

a sring seated in said retainer for normally urging said selector in an axial direction to engage said fingerpiece in one of said notches.

15. The mortar defined in claim 12 wherein the breech end of said firing chamber is provided with a protruding boss having a central hole therethrough for passage of the forward end of said firing pin, said boss including front and rear stop surfaces for halting the movement of said firing pin in either direction.

16. The mortar defined in claim 12 wherein the underside of said gripping portion of said carrying handle includes a slot for partially receiving said depending portion of said trigger whereby the inclination thereof relative to said gripping portion indicates the position of said firing pin in said barrel.

17. The mortar defined in claim 12 wherein said tubular sleeve is of reduced diameter along the lower portion thereof to form an annular shoulder, and said spring-biased plunger means comprises,

a plunger having an enlarged head slidably disposed in the tubular interior of said sleeve in contact with said rear end of said trigger, and

a spring seated between said shoulder and said plunger head for normally urging said trigger to depend from said gripping portion of said carrying handle in the prefired position thereof.

18. The mortar defined in claim 17 wherein said reduced diameter portion of said sleeve is closed at the end thereof in engagement with said lever means and includes an opposed pair of axially elongated slots, and said spring-biased sear means comprises,

a hollow cylindrical sear slidably seated on the exterior surface of said reduced diameter portion of said sleeve,

a transverse pin fixed in said sear in position to extend through said elongated slots in said sleeve, and

a spring seated between said closed end of said sleeve and said transverse pin for biasing said sear into blocking engagement with said lever means in response to the return of said sleeve to the prefired position wherein said trigger depends from said gripping portion of said carrying handle. 

1. In a hand-held mortar having a barrel and a firing chamber therein, a carrying handle fixed to the exterior of the barrel in the vicinity of the firing chamber, a firing pin slidably disposed in the barrel for movement into and out of the firing chamber, and a trigger pivoted in the carrying handle and arranged to depend therefrom for movement between a fired and a prefired position, a firing mechanism between the trigger and the firing pin for transferring movement of one to corresponding movement of the other, comprising, a tubular sleeve slidably disposed in the carrying handle in engagement with one end of the trigger, a lever pivotally mounted in the carrying handle in pivotal engagement with both said sleeve and the firing pin, a plunger slidably housed in said tubular sleeve, a spring seated in said sleeve for normally urging said plunger into contact with the trigger, and a sear slidably mounted on said sleeve for normally blocking pivotal movement of said lever whereby pivotal movement of the trigger in a firing direction actuates said plunger to compress said spring and simultaneously displace said sear out of blocking engagement with said lever whereupon said spring urges said sleeve to pivot said lever and advance the firing pin into the firing chamber.
 2. The firing mechanism defined in claim 1 wherein said sleeve includes a pair of opposed elongated slots and said sear includes a transverse pin disposed for passage through said slots and into contact with said plunger whereby the actuation thereof by said trigger is transferred to said sear.
 3. The firing mechanism defined in claim 1 wherein said sleeve includes a transverse opening therethrough and said one end of said trigger is disposed in contact with a portion of the peripheral surface defining said transverse opening and in contact with said plunger whereby the return of said trigger to the prefired position thereof actuates said sleeve to pivot said lever for effecting the withdrawal of said firing pin from the firing chamber.
 4. The firing mechanism defined in claim 1 wherein said lever comprises, a first arm pivotally connected to the end of said sleeve remote from said trigger, a second arm pivotally engaged with said firing pin, and a third arm terminating in an enlarged stop surface engageable with said sear for blocking pivotal movement of said lever in response to said trigger being disposed in the prefired position thereof.
 5. The firing mechanism defined in claim 1 including selector means disposed in the carrying handle for engagement with said sear, said selector means being adjustable to a first locked position wherein said sear is free to move relative to said sleeve in response to the firing actuation of said trigger, said selector means being further adjustable to a second locked position wherein said sear is blocked against the movement required to permit said firing pin to enter into the firing chamber, and said selector means being still further adjustable to a third locked position wherein said sear is blocked against the movement required to permit withdrawal of said firing pin from the firing chamber.
 6. In a hand-held mortar having a barrel including a firing chamber and a carrying handle fixed to the exterior of the barrel in the vicinity of the firing chamber, a firing mechanism comprising, a firing pin slidably disposed in the barrel for movement into and Out of the firing chamber, a tubular sleeve slidably disposed in the carrying handle, a lever pivotally mounted in the carrying handle for direct pivotal engagement with both said firing pin and said sleeve, a plunger slidably housed in said sleeve, spring means seated between said plunger and said sleeve, a sear slidably mounted on said sleeve in position to normally block pivotal movement of said lever, and a trigger pivotally mounted in the carrying handle in position to extend into said sleeve in contact with the end of said plunger whereby firing movement of said trigger actuates said plunger to compress said spring means and simultaneously displace said sear out of blocking engagement with said lever whereupon said compressed spring means forces said sleeve to pivot said lever in a direction for advancing said firing pin into the firing chamber and whereby the release of said trigger permits said spring means to return said plunger and said trigger to the prefired positions thereof thereby actuating said sleeve to pivot said lever in a direction for withdrawing the firing pin from the firing chamber.
 7. The firing mechanism defined in claim 6 wherein the barrel includes a reduced diameter portion extending rearwardly of the firing chamber therein, a cylindrical housing fixed in said reduced diameter portion of the barrel for slidably receiving said firing pin, and a protruding boss in the breech end of the firing chamber having a central hole therethrough for the passage of the tip of said firing pin, said firing pin housing and said boss being spaced apart and disposed to provide stop surfaces for halting movement of said firing pin in either direction.
 8. The firing mechanism defined in claim 6 wherein the end of said sleeve remote from said lever is provided with a transverse opening therethrough for passage of the end of said trigger into contact with said plunger, said transverse opening being sufficiently larger in diameter than said trigger end to accommodate the pivotal displacement required thereof during the actuation of said plunger and to also avoid any interference with the subsequent slidable firing movement imparted to said sleeve by said spring means.
 9. The firing mechanism defined in claim 6 wherein said pivotal lever comprises, a first arm in pivotal engagement with said firing pin, a second arm in pivotal engagement with said sleeve at the end thereof remote from said trigger, and a third arm having a stop surface engageable with said sear in response to said trigger being disposed in the prefired position thereof.
 10. The firing mechanism defined in claim 6 including a selector rotatably disposed in the carrying handle for movement into and out of engagement with said sear, and means in the carrying handle for locking said selector in a first position wherein said sear is free to respond to the firing actuation of said plunger, in a second position wherein said sear is blocked against the movement required to permit said lever to pivot in the direction for withdrawing the firing pin from the firing chamber, and in a third position wherein said sear is blocked against the movement required to permit said sleeve to pivot said lever in the direction for advancing the firing pin in the firing chamber.
 11. The firing mechanism defined in claim 10 wherein said sear includes an annular recess in the exterior thereof, said selector includes a fingerpiece protruding from the exterior surface of the carrying handle and a central detent portion extending into the interior of the carrying handle and adapted to be rotated into and out of contact with the opposing sidewalls of said annular recess in said sear, and said locking means comprises a plurality of notches radially spaced in the exterior surface of the carrying handle for releasable engagement with said fingerpiece on said selector.
 12. A hand-held mortar comprising, a barrel having a firing chamber therein and a reduceD diameter portion extending rearwardly of said firing chamber, a carrying handle comprising an inclined forward leg fixed to said barrel forwardly of said firing chamber therein, an inclined hollow rear leg fixed to said reduced diameter barrel portion rearwardly of said firing chamber, and a gripping portion substantially parallel with said barrel between the outer ends of said legs, a trigger pivotally disposed in said carrying handle in the vicinity of the junction of said gripping portion and said rear leg, said trigger having a rear end extending into the hollow interior of said rear leg and a forward end depending from the underside of said gripping portion on said carrying handle, a tubular sleeve slidably disposed within the hollow interior of said rear leg of said carrying handle and having a transverse opening therethrough for passage of said trigger rear end, spring biased plunger means slidably seated in said tubular sleeve in contact with said trigger rear end, a firing pin slidably disposed in said reduced diameter portion of said barrel for movement into and out of said firing chamber, lever means pivotally mounted within said rear leg in the vicinity of the junction thereof with said reduced diameter portion of said barrel in simultaneous pivotal engagement with said tubular sleeve and said firing pin, spring-biased sear means slidably mounted on said tubular sleeve in contact with said plunger means and normally urged into contact with said lever means to block pivotal movement thereof, selector means rotatably mounted in said rear leg of said carrying handle for movement into and out of engagement with said sear means, and means for releasably locking said selector means in a plurality of radially spaced positions including, a first position wherein said sear means is free to move into and out of blocking contact with said lever means in response to the pivotal movement of said trigger, a second position wherein said sear means is retained in blocking engagement with said lever means in response to said firing pin protruding into said firing chamber, and a third position wherein said sear means is retained in blocking engagement with said lever means in response to said firing pin being withdrawn from said firing chamber.
 13. The mortar defined in claim 12 wherein said sear includes an annular recess and said selector means comprises, a selector having a body portion formed by a pair of spaced discs disposed in said rear leg of said carrying handle for rotative and axial movement, a fingerpiece fixed to one of said discs for rotating said selector, and a substantially rectangular detent portion centrally fixed between said discs in position to intersect said sear during a portion of the rotation of said selector and engage with the sidewalls of said annular sear recess whereby said sear is longitudinally displaced relative to said sleeve in accordance with the direction of rotation of said selector.
 14. The mortar defined in claim 13 wherein said means for releasably locking said selector in said plurality of radially spaced positions comprises, a plurality of notches radially spaced at 90* intervals in the exterior surface of said rear leg of said carrying handle, a substantially V-shaped edge on the underside of said fingerpiece extending radially beyond said disc adjacent thereto for engagement in said notches during the rotation of said selector, a stud extending from said disc remote from said fingerpiece in axial alignment with said detent portion and of sufficient length to protrude from said carrying handle rear leg on the side opposite from said plurality of notches, a spring retainer fixed to said stud, and a spring seated in said retainer for normally urging said selector in an axial direction to engage said fingerpiece in one of said notches.
 15. The mortar defined in claim 12 wherein the breech end of said firing chamber is provided with A protruding boss having a central hole therethrough for passage of the forward end of said firing pin, said boss including front and rear stop surfaces for halting the movement of said firing pin in either direction.
 16. The mortar defined in claim 12 wherein the underside of said gripping portion of said carrying handle includes a slot for partially receiving said depending portion of said trigger whereby the inclination thereof relative to said gripping portion indicates the position of said firing pin in said barrel.
 17. The mortar defined in claim 12 wherein said tubular sleeve is of reduced diameter along the lower portion thereof to form an annular shoulder, and said spring-biased plunger means comprises, a plunger having an enlarged head slidably disposed in the tubular interior of said sleeve in contact with said rear end of said trigger, and a spring seated between said shoulder and said plunger head for normally urging said trigger to depend from said gripping portion of said carrying handle in the prefired position thereof.
 18. The mortar defined in claim 17 wherein said reduced diameter portion of said sleeve is closed at the end thereof in engagement with said lever means and includes an opposed pair of axially elongated slots, and said spring-biased sear means comprises, a hollow cylindrical sear slidably seated on the exterior surface of said reduced diameter portion of said sleeve, a transverse pin fixed in said sear in position to extend through said elongated slots in said sleeve, and a spring seated between said closed end of said sleeve and said transverse pin for biasing said sear into blocking engagement with said lever means in response to the return of said sleeve to the prefired position wherein said trigger depends from said gripping portion of said carrying handle. 